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As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Best wishes for a wonderful and magical new year!
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12-30-2010, 04:30 PM
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#1
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PassPorter Guide
 Community Rank: Globetrotter 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,041
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Feature Article: Disney Admission Options for Military Families - Military Family Series
Disney Admission Options for Military Families - Military Family Series
by Sarah Mudd
When it comes to travel, military members have a handful of options for purchasing their attraction and theme park tickets. I am constantly amazed that there are so many military families that don't know that these options exist or just what they can get from using this benefit. So, my military friends (and friends of military friends) I am here to shed a little light on your options when it comes to saving money on tickets! One constant benefit that military members have is their local base Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) office. They offer discounted tickets for attractions local to your particular base’s area as well as some hotels and seasonal events, plays, ice skating and ballet performances. Most MWR ticket offices offer Walt Disney World tickets and only some (mostly west coast bases, but some in other areas of the country) offer Disneyland tickets at fairly great discounts. If your local office does not stock the particular ticket that you need, do ask about it because oftentimes they can order them for you!
One ticket that all MWR offices are offering is Disney's Military Salute tickets for 2010 and 2011! These tickets are available for purchase through September 28, 2011 and must be completely used by October 1, 2011.
At Walt Disney World, you can get a 4-day ticket with either Park Hopper option or Water Parks Fun and More option added for $138 each or you can add both options for a total of $165 per ticket. The resort hotels are also offering a discount under the military salute. 40% off of deluxe, 35% off of moderate and 30% off of value resort rooms. The resort rooms are limited in number so if you are planning on using this discount, call Disney, your local MWR folks or your travel agent to book now and lock in your discount! Disneyland is offering a 3-day Park Hopper ticket for just $99, which is an amazing deal! The same ticket with the same perks purchased at the gate costs $186, so the savings thanks to the Military Salute is great!
As part of the offer, each member/sponsor (or spouse) may only purchase six total tickets. They all must be purchased at the same time so if you need three tickets for one trip and two tickets for a trip a couple of months later, they all must be purchased at the same time! If you purchase the tickets at your MWR office or at Shades of Green Resort at Walt Disney World, you will not have to pay any sales tax on your purchase. However, sales tax will apply if you choose to purchase the tickets at a Walt Disney World or Disneyland ticket window.
There are blackout dates on the tickets that will apply. At Walt Disney World, all four main theme parks will be blacked out on December 27-31, 2010 and April 17-23, 2011. July 4, 2011 will be blacked out at the Magic Kingdom only. At Disneyland, the blackout dates are this Christmas Eve through New Year's Day, February 18-21, April 17-23 and July 1-4, 2011.
If you aren’t able to make it to a MWR ticket office before your trip to the Orlando area, you can stop in to Shades of Green Resort to purchase discounted tickets. They offer tickets to all of the major Florida theme parks as well as local dinner shows and attractions such as Gatorland, Boggy Creek Air Boat tours, and the Richard Petty Experience.
To compare prices, Shades of Green offers the Richard Petty Rookie Experience for $361 (no tax is charged). If you were to book that through Disney, it was cost you $449 plus tax, so taking advantage of the Shades of Green ticket sales benefit can lead to significant savings!
Likewise, comparing Walt Disney World tickets, purchasing a 4-day Magic Your Way base ticket at the park gates will run you $247.08. If you purchase that same ticket at Shades of Green, it will cost only $228. If you use your MWR benefit on base, it could be the same if not cheaper for you! For example, here at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, where we are stationed, the 4-day base ticket costs $227.75. Naval Air Station Jacksonville offers the same ticket for $219 and in the San Diego area, the 4-day ticket with Park Hopper option added would only cost $2 more than the gate price of a base ticket!
Vacationing can be expensive. Thankfully, our military takes good care of us families and provides us with ticket options that every military member of every rank can afford. Do your homework, crunch and compare numbers to find the best deal! As I mentioned earlier on, if your MWR office doesn’t have a particular ticket that you need, it can’t hurt to ask about them ordering it for you. Do be sure to go in with plenty of time to spare before your trip to allow for shipping (to either your house or the MWR office). As always, keep an eye out for news on military deals and promotions at DisneyWorld.com/military, at MouseSavers.com and, of course, on the PassPorter message boards!
Added to PassPorter's Article Collection on 12-28-2010 10:12 AM
What do you think? Please add your own comments, experiences, or news related to this article in this thread! Reader feedback is welcomed and encouraged.
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